Five Days
by underyourstars
Summary: **COMPLETE** Ginny decides to confess her feelings to Harry – and she has five days to do so, before giving up completely.
1. Epilogue Making the Decision

_ _

_Title: Five Days_

_Author: underyourstars_

_Email: underyourstars@uol.com.br_

_Rating: PG (more to be safe than anything)_

_Classification: romance/humor_

_Pairings: Harry/Ginny; Ron/Hermione_

_Spoilers: All four books_

_Disclaimers: If they were mine, book five would be out already…_

_Summary: Ginny decides to confess her feelings to Harry – and she has five days to do so, before giving up completely._

_Thank__you: Amanda, for your repulsion for this pairing inspired me in ways you can never imagine! ;-) And may I recommend her fanfiction? Take a look at [http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=35480][1] and check for yourself – she is a great writer. And although she is annoyingly a H/Hr shipper, she is still worth to read ;)_

## Prologue - making the decision

I gave a sideways glance to Harry – again. It had been a week since he had come to spend the end of the summer holidays with us at the Burrow, and I wasn't used to having him around yet.

I'm not saying that having him around is a _bad thing. Oh, no, I like having Harry around, it's just… Well, the house is not safe when he's here._

I know what you're thinking, so stop right there. I'm not afraid of him bringing danger to the house – I'm saying I _become the danger. I can see objects shrink and shiver when I pass by; not one of them is safe, especially if Harry smiles at me, or even looks my way. I've broken vases, glasses, clocks; I ripped up the sofa and then shredded books I was supposed to be reading._

My father, even busy as he was, had already noticed my odd behaviour and asked me if anything was wrong. Mother, on the other hand, knew better. I saw her _I-know-what's-going-on smile when I broke my favourite mug and consequently burned my hand in hot tea after Harry asked me to pass the jelly the other day._

The whole situation was truly pathetic. Alright, so I have had a crush on The Boy Who Lived for five years – even before knowing him well – but you know what? Five years is too much time to have a crush on someone, so it should have been over by…

Oh, Harry is getting up to leave the table. He's so grown. His body is so developed – I never expected he would get so… manly. And what a beautiful man he's becoming. His dark hair frames his face perfectly, and his eyes are turning a beautiful shade of green, shining as never before. There is where I can see all his changes – he shows maturity and confidence in his look. But he also shows a sadness that breaks my heart. It is always there – behind any other emotion he shows. Sometimes, this sadness is replaced by something even worse – numbness. That is when he shows that the world can affect him still, and the past year's happenings are still fresh in his memory; when he isn't even looking around, not realizing what is going on around him.

Of course, it was stupid of me to think he would be absolutely sad or absolutely dumb all the time because of what had happened. But I really didn't think he would look so resigned – and yet so brave. Sometimes we can see signs of insecurity, like when he blinks several times at something my father's telling him, or when he gazes vaguely at the floor.

My brother and Hermione haven't realized his changes of mood yet, for they have been too busy bickering at each other. She arrived in our house two days before Harry did, and since then nobody is crazy enough to be around them when they're together – except for Harry. It is _so obvious they like each other, and even still, not one of them has realized it yet. Yesterday, when I asked Hermione why she wouldn't just kiss Ron instead of screaming at him, she got really mad at me. In fact, she has been ignoring me since then (and, according to Fred, Ron threatened to tell Mum about his plans for a joke shop if he said one more thing about Hermione being kissable.) _

But at least she was talking to the boy she liked. She actually knew him, and Ron also knew her. They had a reason to like each other. My reason for linking Harry is impossible to define. So I think he's cute; big deal. Although the fact that he had saved my life back in my first year at Hogwarts _was a big deal, he had been a kind of hero to me since before that._

That's why I could never talk to him properly. What would he think of the stupid little Ginny, his best friend's sister? And what exactly could I talk to him about?

See? Talking to him was a stupid thing to do. I would probably just start to babble about something until he begged me to stop. Yes, that's what would happen.

I looked outside and saw Harry smiling at my mother while Ron complained about something, my brother's face showing disgust and tiredness. Amazing, as I think about it, Harry is a kind of hero to Ron, too. All my knowledge of Harry came from Ron's stories about him; how great he is, what they had done together, the dangers they faced… Of course, I know I can't really trust Ron's stories – he has a tendency to fantasize and make the thing look more dangerous than it would actually be (really, how could anyone have believed his story about fighting mermaids down in the lake during the second task?)

But Ron could keep a decent conversation with his hero. So why couldn't I?

I was still immersed in thoughts when felt someone gently tapping my shoulder. I looked up, startled, to see Hermione staring at me, her face pale as if she was scared.

"May I speak with you?" If her voice hadn't been so squeaky, she would have sounded _so formal._

I nodded, smiling warmly, without knowing what to expect, when I realized we were alone in the kitchen.

"You were right," she started, and she sounded like she was admitting a crime, "I like Ron."

I tried not to roll my eyes at this; I knew she needed a friend's support. I mean, it was obvious to everyone, but it must not be easy to admit to being in love with a pain like my brother. 

"What do I do?" Now she seemed absolutely desperate.

I shivered in panic, frozen for a moment. Was Hermione asking _me what to do?_

When I met her anxious eyes, I had to refrain from asking her the same question back. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"But I can't simply talk to him about this!" Hermione shrieked.

She was now sitting on my bed, a quill in her hands and a large parchment before her. Trust Hermione to treat a girly chat about a boy like it was a class. 

"Of course you can," I promptly said. "Aren't you his best friend?"

"Along with Harry, yes…"

"And don't you talk to him about many things?"

"Well, yes…"

"So, that's just one more thing to discuss with him. Don't worry," I said, as I watched her write '_just one more thing' on the parchment. "I know he feels the same way about you. It may be embarrassing to begin with, but it will be a relief to get this off your chest." _

Obviously, I wasn't talking from experience, but I definitely knew what I was talking about. The day I could finally admit openly I was in love with Harry would be the happiest day of my life.

Hermione shook her head in disbelief, showing she wasn't brave enough. What a Gryffindor!

"Establish a deadline, then," I tried desperately, knowing it was that or my brother would never have a girlfriend. Who else was stupid enough to want _him? "Let's say… five days! Yes, five days. If in five days you can't bring yourself to talk to him about this, then you give up."_

Her face lit up after she heard that.

"Brilliant!" she exclaimed. "Yes, that's great! I'll try for five days. And in those five days I'll really bring myself to it. If I can't talk to him in five days, then it isn't supposed to be, right?"

_Well, not really, I wanted to answer, but she was so happy with my idea I couldn't destroy that now, so I just smiled in return._

But I tell you something: if she couldn't bring herself to tell Ron she liked him in five days, I would do her a favour.

I'd tell him myself. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank God I never needed to. Three days later we were at Diagon Alley, so when they went to the magical pet shop to buy treats for Crookshanks and Harry stayed behind to help me with my books – both because he is a gentleman and because my mother is a plot demon -, she took the courage she needed.

Later that night she told me how romantic it had been, how they shared their first kiss right above an acrobatic rat, with a magical toad singing them a song. I couldn't help but think that would be my idea of the least romantic thing to have for my first kiss, but she was so happy - and I was so relieved - that everything was fine. 

Harry had been so happy for both of them that it made me love him even more. He had smiled and touched my back gently, saying, "That's great!" And then he turned to me, still smiling. "Isn't that great?"

I mumbled something incoherent and smiled, too. I think Ron seemed happy, too – I'm not sure, because Harry had smiled at me, so I couldn't be sure of anything.

Later that night, I came to a conclusion: the truth would be my best weapon. It didn't matter anymore why I was in love with him, or how he felt about me: I was in love with him and he should know about it. I would establish a deadline for myself: five days. In five days or less, I would bring myself to go to Harry Potter and say out loud that I was in love with him. 

Five days.

Starting from tomorrow.

   [1]: http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=35480



	2. Chapter One Day One: Committing to the ...

A/N: First of all, I want to thanks everyone who reviewed the first chapter (that was actually the epilogue): Robin (reviews like yours make me happy for days!); Lee Velviet (is it possible that one of my favourite authors is actually reading my story? Oh, God, I'm so flattered now…); Pseudonym Sylphmuse (never heard of a story like this? Well, I hope it was a good surprise, then ;); John; RoqueAngel; Female Fred; and Zippy Diaperbrain. I hope this chapter keeps up with your expectations… 

**Anyway, have you read Amanda's fiction already? If not, please, follow the link in the first chapter and take a look… you won't regret it, I promise! **

Chapter One 

Day One: committing to the decision 

Needless to say, my decision had been postponed so many times that not only five days had passed, but more like two months.

So here I am, sitting at a table in the common room, my Transfiguration books around me and my head in the Quidditch field, where Harry and Ron are practising.

I don't know who was happier with Ron being the Gryffindors' new Keeper: himself, Hermione or me. She was so proud of her boyfriend; I was so happy he could finally _play_ Quidditch instead of just babbling about it. Of course, it made him babble even more about the sport, but now it was for a good reason – it wasn't just because Quidditch was the only subject he could keep in a decent conversation.

Well, maybe that's too harsh, but I don't care. I hate him right now.

He always excludes me from his group, and always makes such an important face when he says: "You're too young, Ginny, and besides, you should be studying right now."

What a nerve! He, the laziest boy in the school, telling _me I should be studying! My grades are better than his, and I'm sure I could beat him in a duel anytime!_

But this hate for my brother actually started two nights ago, when he and Hermione were talking about their relationship, Harry beside them pretending to read a book. I was sitting right in front of them, listening to Hermione complaining about how Ron never even gave her a sign he was in love with her, and it was she who had taken the courage to make the first move.

"Well, but not me alone," she smiled, looking briefly at me before turning back to Ron. "Ginny helped me a lot in this. I still remember, she said, 'Hermione, if you feel what you say you feel about Ron, you have to tell him! You trust him with so many things, you have to trust my brother won't treat your feelings harshly! Establish a goal for yourself – telling him that you love him – and then do it!'"

Wow, I was so proud of myself! I seemed so… clever! I never thought I could actually say such beautiful, deep things!

But wait a minute… I hadn't said those beautiful, deep things. That was Hermione putting words in my mouth. But when I saw Harry smiling proudly at me, I didn't care about that. She could lie as much as she wanted. 

But you can trust Ron to ruin a great moment. 

"Wow," he said, "you must had been really desperate to go to Ginny for counselling on something like this!"

He's not my brother; he's a troll. 

I sighed heavily at the memory when I saw the Gryffindor team all enter the common room – but Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen.

They were all covered in mud, and they looked exhausted. Soon, I heard Fred answering a girl who asked what had happened, "Harry was hit by a Bludger that Malfoy threw at him, and he is now in the Infirmary."

My heart skipped a beat. I heard the girl ask what Malfoy had been doing at the Gryffindor practice, but Fred shook his head and said the Slytherins' team had shown up and wouldn't leave.

I grabbed George's arm when he passed by me and I didn't even need to ask, for he had read my pleading look. "He will be fine, Gin."

Then he answered the second question I didn't ask, "Ron and Hermione were the only ones allowed to stay with him."

I could see from George's worried look that the same memory was crossing our minds: last year, when Harry had been taken to the Infirmary after the third task.

The pain I had felt back then came back to me fully. I had spent the entire night awake, crying quietly in George's arms, while Fred guaranteed me that if Harry was lethally hurt we'd already have known.

But I had wanted to be there beside him. I had wanted to hold his hand, to see for myself if he was indeed alright. I had envied Ron and Hermione so much that night. They had been there, they had seen everything; they had been beside him – while I had stayed outside the Infirmary, watching the commotion and being ignored by everyone. I can still remember it vividly, Dumbledore entering the Infirmary right after Professor McGonagall and Fudge had, the door closing behind him, shutting me out from where I wanted to be.

And it was happening again. I was shut out from his life, from his side – the only place I wanted to be.

I noticed Fred staring at me from behind George, so I let go of his arm, smiling faintly as I turned back to my books.

I heard them sigh and turn their backs toward me to go to their dormitory. I could count on a prank early tomorrow morning to cheer me up. 

But I knew what I had to do if I wanted to change anything; whether I wanted to have him, or to give up of him for good.

I had five days. Starting from the very first moment I saw him again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That moment was right in the morning, during breakfast. He came and sat two seats away from me at the empty table, Ron and Hermione close behind – therefore, I couldn't talk to him just now.

But the countdown had begun.

I saw him eat his breakfast and then go to his Double Potions with a look on his face that seemed he was going to Hell to be tortured. Then, I remembered what a _delightful_ class he would be having, and I realized he was indeed going to Hell to be tortured.

Later, after my Double Herbology, I watched him eat his lunch, looking relieved that the torture was over, but soon looking mournful again before going to his Divination class.

But at night, right after the dinner I skipped to spend reading, I saw him alone, taking a seat by the table at the common room, a tarot deck in one hand, a book and pieces of parchment in the other.

I took a deep breath, grabbed my bag and walked over to him. "Do you mind if I…?" I didn't complete the sentence, pointing at the chair in front of him. 

He looked puzzled for a moment, and then embarrassed, but after a minute that seemed like hours he said: "If you sit in front of me, I won't have enough room to lay the cards." He raised the deck, and then said before I could feel disappointed, "Why don't you sit here beside me?" 

I blinked several times, thinking it was too perfect to be true, before I smiled and sat right beside him.

"If I bother you with the cards just tell me so, alright?" He smiled as I placed my Arithmancy book on the table.

I nodded, too enchanted to speak, while he focused on his cards and forgot about me.

Have you ever felt Heaven and Hell combined in one moment? If you haven't, I don't think you'll be able to understand what I was feeling. Sitting beside him, feeling his arm brushing mine once in a while… And also being consumed with fear, wanting to engage in conversation and not knowing what to say…

He was the one who solved this dilemma. I was staring at my book, looking petrified and going through different tones of "how have you been?" to choose the best one to use when he turned to me and asked:

"Looking at these cards, how do you think I can get hurt if not by a Bludger, a crazy centaur or an unidentified beast?"

I was speechless, and looked at the cards just because his finger was pointing at them.

Many things crossed my mind, and, miraculously, an idea came: "Maybe you could… trip over your feet and break your leg because…" my eyes ran through the cards and I saw one with a man being hanged by his foot, so I just read the name of it: "… because of the Hanged Man?"

"Perfect, Ginny!" he exclaimed. "That was great!"

I knew I was looking pathetic, smiling widely like I was, but I couldn't help myself. 

"This is getting very difficult, you know," he said. "I don't have any more tragedies to write in my assignments; I used almost all of them in the previous years…" He shook his head, finished writing my idea down and then looked at the cards. "And the cards aren't helping, either! They're mostly good! Do you see this one here, on the end? The World? According to this book, it's the best card of the deck. How can I make this card look tragic?"

"You can say that it refers to your worst enemy…?" I suggested reluctantly.

He smiled again: "Yes!"

While he wrote it down, I analysed the cards. I had never had Divination, and I knew nothing about tarot, but even so I could sense that that was _not the way a reading was supposed to be done, and certainly neither the Hanged Man nor the World meant what I had suggested. I saw the Lovers card laid on the table and couldn't help but joke: "The Lovers, huh? Who is the lucky girl?"_

I closed my mouth in terror when I realized what I had just said. I watched as Harry's face turned red, and then, a strange shade of purple. "Yes, well… this card keeps showing. I guess I'm not shuffling the cards right…"

"Hum, well… you can say someone you love will fall in love with someone else…" I tried to fix my mistake, and luckily his face went back to his usual lovely colour.

"You know, Ginny, you have a great mind for disasters!"

My face was lit again by a huge smile until his words finally struck me. Was that a compliment?

"Just like Ron! He is the one who usually helps me with the Divination assignments, but tonight he was studying with Hermione…"

It seemed amazing to me how his _studying_ didn't sound ironic at all. Was it possible he actually believed they would be studying?

"_Humph! Studying, my…" he didn't finish the sentence, but I realized he wasn't as naïve as he wanted to appear._

He finished his assignment with a dramatic flourish, and then collected his cards.

"Thank you for your help, Ginny," he said, turning to look at me. 

"Anytime," I said, and I knew it was now or never. "Harry, there's something I need to tell you…"

He kept staring at me, a curious look on his face, and I took a deep breath before continuing:

"I know I'm young, but I'm not _that_ young, you know…"

I saw him become more uncomfortable in his chair, and then a commotion on the other side of the room caught our attention. Parvati was jumping up and down, smiling dazzlingly at Lavender, talking excitedly about something, and I saw Harry watch her hair falling smoothly on her back, her lips curving in that beautiful smile, and I realized he seemed hypnotized by her.

Then a thought crossed my mind: I could never match her beauty. I could never be as charming and gracious as she is. 

When he turned back to me, a smile playing on his lips, I knew that it wasn't the right time to confess what I wanted to.

"Yes, Ginny?" he murmured as if to catch my attention, his shining eyes destroying the rest of my confidence.

"I just wanted to say that you can count on me for anything, Harry. Although I'm not a friend of yours as my brother is, I want you to know I'll be here if you ever need to talk."

That came easier than I thought. Perhaps it was because it wasn't what I really wanted to say.

"Thank you," he finally said. "I appreciate it very much. It's good to know… you know."

"Yes, I know." I could feel my clumsiness coming back and I knew I had to finish that conversation before I messed up everything, so I said the very first thing that crossed my disturbed mind: "Friends are good."

I saw him nod slowly at me, standing up with a confused look on his face, clearly thinking about my words. Then he finally muttered a good night and I tried to keep my smile frozen on my face while watching him leave.

When he was finally out of sight, I let the smile die and bumped my head several times on the table.

Friends are _good_?!?!

Somebody hex me. Now. 


	3. Chapter Two Day Two: Amazingly, Finding...

A/N: Thank you sooo much everyone who reviewed!!! Thank you: Bucky, StoryHungry; Coeur De Lion; Mid-Nite-Potter; Bri Potter; GiRliEgIrL; Aeris Deathscythe; Lucia Dreams; Robin (again, your review made my day! I could never thank you enough, really); Nessie (here it is, you won't have to hex me! *_sigh in relief_*); RogueAngel (your review was another one of my all time favourites! ;); John (you know, sometimes I wonder if I'm not romantic in my own twisted way… *_grins_*); Ian (you're absolutely right, reviews do give us reasons to keep writing!); Shyanne (yes, Ginny has a character! Yes, Ginny has a brain! I mean, I've always thought she does and hopefully, that's how I'm writing her… ;); and bluetreeleaves. You guys are the best, and I really hope you keep reading and liking my story! Chapter Two 

Day Two – amazingly, finding a friend 

Harry had been so polite the next morning I couldn't believe my ears. Apparently, he had forgiven my "friends are good" and decided to remember me for the other aspects of our conversation. Which was great, because it made me see I could still talk to him.

And now, as they entered the Great Hall, we all could see Ron and Hermione together didn't end his problems. Although they were not arguing over his head anymore, they were so sweet it was sickening.

And, of course, there was the "lunch argument." Every lunchtime, they would argue about something – anything. Today was about Muggle Studies – if she didn't take it, she would have more time for him, and if he didn't accept her doing what she wanted to do, maybe their relationship would never work and yadda yadda yadda.

I could see Harry was tired of this already, as he was trying to calm them down and they wouldn't even listen to him. He rolled his eyes and looked around him – to catch me staring at him.

Luckily he smiled and moved closer to me until he was sitting right beside me. "Do you mind?"

I shook my head, not sure of what to say.

"They are starting to get on my nerves…"

I smiled at him, watching him struggle with his chicken, as his hands trembled. Boy, was it possible that being around them was _that_ insufferable? 

"I'm starting to regret giving Hermione that deep advice," I joked, a small smile on my face.

He stared at me for a moment and then laughed; I could tell he had sensed there was more than one kind of irony in my words, but he was too polite to say anything.

Unfortunately, I was too stupid to leave it there.

"I mean, I never said those things to Hermione," I stated, staring at my chicken. "I just said: 'talk to him. He feels the same about you, so just tell him and everything will be fine.' Well, that wasn't what I said either, but it happened almost three months ago, I don't remember the exact words, but there was not much more to it…"

So I finally stopped talking to find him watching me attentively. I held my breath, regretting my babbling for several minutes until he said, "Yes, that sounds more like you."

I froze for a moment. His tone had been so soft I didn't know what to say. 

I stared at my plate instead, avoiding his eyes. But what was I doing? That was a time as good as any; no one was paying attention to us, and all I had to do was say…

"Harry?" I called resolutely.

He looked at me again, but then another commotion interrupted me. Again, Parvati was laughing loudly and talking excitedly to her friend and now her sister. "She's always doing that!" I exclaimed, not realizing it had come out loud.

Then I heard Harry's soft laugh beside me and felt my face burn with embarrassment. 

"You should see them in Divination," he told me, his voice low. "They giggle at anything. It seems they know what's going to happen to anyone until the end of time since they became Trelawney's pets."

I stared at him, amazed by his words. And then I saw. That smile was there again, and it wasn't because he was hypnotized by their beauty, or anything. He was actually mocking them. "How can anyone be that shallow?" 

I smiled wildly at his comment, feeling so relieved he felt exactly like I did.

Then he waved goodbye and left for his classes, leaving me very happy for just having one more memory of him to keep.

Life was great.


	4. Chapter Three Day Four: Consolidating t...

**A/N: Once again, thank you everyone who reviewed!! Thanks: _Female Fred_ (Yes, well, let's see how much of a Gryffindor she is!); _don't-wanna-be-just-like-you_ (oh, now I understand why you didn't update your fic "Ignorance is a Bliss" for such a long time; you've been reading and reviewing other fics! Well, quit doing that and go write your story please, because I'm dying to know what's happening next!); _Ian_; _furiya_ (thank you, I'm trying to keep her in character as much as I can… what's not so difficult, since we don't really know how her character is!); _Lucia Dreams_ (if I tell you I don't know yet, would you believe me?); _bluetreeleaves_ (here I am, updating as fast as I could! *_wink_*** And I have written two more fics, but they are not H/G though…); _Rogue Angel_ (I also hope, but I really don't know if he has any feelings for Ginny yet… but he will, I promise! ;); _John_; _Kelzery_ and _Pseudonym Sylphmuse _(I agree with you… that's why I can never bring myself to write a story that starts with a kiss; the characters have to know each other and become friends before anything else in my opinion…). Really, you guys are soooo great, I can't explain how happy you all made me!****

**This chapter is longer, so… Enjoy! And please, keep reviewing and making me a very happy girl, will you? ;)**

**Chapter Three**

**Day Four – consolidating the friendship**

Now you're all wondering: _What happened to day three?_ And I answer: it was the worst day I could have experienced, _ever. _

It started when I woke up and tripped on my bed covers and it went downhill from there.

I took such a long shower that I missed breakfast and had to run not to miss my first class, Charms. We were learning the summoning spell, and some _funny_ git decided to summon me, which made me fly through the classroom to land on a Slytherin boy.

Then I saw Harry in the break between classes and he waved at me. Now I wish he hadn't, for the memory of him smiling and waving at me from the distance took away my concentration and made me accidentally transfigure Colin's hair into feathers. From my point of view it was brilliant, for we had never managed to transfigure human hair into anything before, but Professor McGonagall didn't see my point and gave me detention.

At lunchtime, I didn't see Harry anywhere, but Ron and Hermione were there, and they didn't have any argument – instead, they spent the entire time holding hands beneath the table, or playing footsie. It would have worked fine if they hadn't been sitting in front of each other, and me beside Hermione. To have Ron touching my leg with his foot is _not_ a pleasant memory. 

In the afternoon, Double Potions. Although Snape is not so unpleasant around us as he is around Harry, he doesn't like Colin very much because the boy has a picture of him itching his large nose that is very funny. But apparently, Snape didn't find it funny at all and now is trying to hurt Colin with psychological torture – which, may I say, is working.

But Colin is always sitting beside me, and he is my partner in Potions, so Snape's torture backfires on me sometimes, and lately we hadn't managed even one potion right. 

I missed dinner comforting Colin down in the dungeons, where he was too petrified to even walk, so later I went straight to my detention.

I can say now from experience that I never ever want to be a house elf. Cleaning a bathroom is one of the worst things ever, especially with Peeves singing dirty songs about redheads. 

So I was feeling terrible, thinking nothing could go worse, when I entered the common room to find Harry cornered by some fifth year girls who were demanding to know if there was anything between him and Cho.

He was so uncomfortable I pitied him. His mouth was opening and closing, but no sound was coming from it, and every once in a while he mumbled something incoherent that no one could hear, until he finally muttered, "No… nothing."

The entire common room was watching him, then he spoke more clearly, "Nothing's going on between me and Cho."

"But is there a chance of you becoming a couple?" one of the girls asked.

"Yes, is there? 'Cause we've heard you invited her to the Yule Ball last year…" another one continued.

I could see his eyes searching everywhere for help. Colin was taking pictures of the awkward scene and Ron and Hermione were in one of their _studying activities somewhere in the castle, far from the common room. I could not even ask for help from Fred and George, for I had seen them both serving detention with Filch. _

I cursed Ron for leaving his best friend alone at a crucial time like this, but I knew it wasn't his fault. But anyway, thinking of Ron gave me the craziest idea. I decided to take it at that exact moment.

I screamed as loud as I could until I sensed every pair of eyes in the room staring at me. Then I muttered, "I think I saw an aramantula."

The room went insane. Everyone went running to their respective dormitories and in five minutes there was no one there except for me and Harry. His face was flushed and he was breathing heavily like he had run a thousand miles.

I didn't want to hear anything from him; the thought of him with Cho Chang was too much for me to bear, so I ran to my dormitory as fast as I could, to the safety of my bed. 

Where I still am. It's Saturday, anyway, so there's nothing for me to do out there. 

Nothing, if you forget the fact that I lost an entire day yesterday and tomorrow I reach my deadline. Tomorrow is the day that I tell Harry what I feel, or let go for good.

The idea of letting go never seemed so tempting. I keep remembering Cho and her smile, Cho and her friends, Cho and her charm, Cho and… the way Harry looks at Cho.

So, he's fifteen, his hormones must be bursting inside of him all the time and he's probably looking at every girl like she is a possibility.

Every girl but me.

He still looks at me like I am his best friend's little sister. The stupid girl he had to save four years ago. 

And although he is always so kind, I know it is because he is too polite to be anything else.

_Stop the countdown, I said to myself while taking a shower._

_It's the best thing you could do, I kept repeating to myself while I changed into my robes. __Let go of this ridiculous idea of telling him how you feel._

_It's not like he would ever love you back. _

This sentence hit me. I can be so harsh to myself when I want to.

But then I returned to the common room to find him there, smiling at Ron and then walking straight toward me, looking more nervous the closer he got.

"Hello, Ginny," he said without looking me in the eye. What was going on?

"We were worried. You missed lunch already."

_I wish I had missed the entire day, I thought to myself while I watched him standing in front of me, keeping a safe distance while burying his hands in his pockets._

But then again, he was so beautiful my heart seemed to shrink. I couldn't look at him anymore, so my eyes went to the floor and I could feel my face burning. 

"Are you hungry?" His voice startled me, and I jumped at his question.

"A little bit." My voice was as squeaky as Hermione's had been that day in the Burrow.

"Do you want to get some food?" he asked, now watching me attentively.

I nodded, not understanding what his point was, but he told me to follow him and I did, so soon we were walking down the stairs side by side, while he told me how Hermione had found the way to the kitchen when she was trying to get the elves to fight for their rights.

Some minutes later we were inside the kitchen (please, don't ever ask me to make my way there by myself, for Harry had smiled, and had talked and had been there… so I didn't notice anything else) where a bunch of elves came running to ask what they could get for us.

I saw Harry talking enthusiastically to a particularly strange elf he called Dobby before turning to me and asking what I wanted.

There in the kitchens, with his face flushed and his concerned look, I just wanted to kiss him. But my dreams were quickly vanished by a couple of elves who giggled behind me, waking me up.

I looked at them and they whispered so only I could hear: "May we suggest a picnic by the lake, Miss?"

My eyes were opened wide and as I watched in terror, they ran to the other side of the kitchen without even waiting for an answer.

Harry was deep in conversation with Dobby, and I didn't even realize Dobby was talking when he turned to me: "Sister of Mr. Weezly, it's a pleasure to meet you, the sister of such a good and magnanimous wizard…"

I felt my face contort in disgust while he bowed before me. Was he actually talking about my brother? I could think of a number of things to describe Ron, but 'magnanimous' would _never_ be one of them. 

But then I saw the elf was wearing a sweater like the ones my mother would always send Ron on Christmas and I understood everything. 

Soon the elves came running back to us, and put a large basket in Harry's hands. "Have a good picnic, sir," they said while bowing repeatedly.

"A picnic?" Harry asked, looking at the basket, but then he smiled and looked at me. "Great idea, Gin!"

I smiled back at him while he turned to leave, fortunately never seeing all those elves winking at me with wicked smiles on their faces.

I just kept smiling 'til we were out of the kitchens, and I realized he was actually going outside to have a picnic with me. 

I love house elves.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Tell Dobby I will happily give him the sweater I will get for Christmas," I said, watching him bite into one of the sandwiches the elves had sent us.

"You can't imagine how thankful he would be," he laughed, assuming a different expression and then imitating Dobby's voice and manners, "Oh, Miss is the most _magnanimous witch Dobby __ever met…" _

It was a perfect impersonation of the elf, and I couldn't help but laugh quietly while taking a sip of my pumpkin juice. But then he was serious again and whispered my name. He coughed and then said:

"I want to thank you for saving me yesterday."

My face went red and I told him to forget it.

"No, really. Last night, the girls decided to joke around with the tarot cards and they decided to read it to everyone in the room, and that blasted Lovers card appeared to me _again_," his face was flushed, and he seemed very upset. "So they kept insisting on me telling them if I was in love with anyone and… well, someone remembered…"

"Cho Chang," I completed for him, feeling very embarrassed myself.

"Yes," he whispered, taking a sip of his juice.

"These things happen…" I tried to comfort him, as he seemed very upset.

"I don't think that's the kind of joke you play on anyone, you know?" He sighed as if he was finally letting go of that. "It's not just embarrassing, it's… humiliating. No one deserves that."

"Maybe _they_ do," I tried to cheer him up, smiling.

And then he smiled back, nodding. "Yes," he cheered, "let them taste a bit of their own poison."

So we stayed several minutes just paying a lot of attention to the basket of food beside us, not knowing what to say. My heart was hurting a bit. That was why he had wanted to go to the kitchen with me: to thank me. 

"You didn't need to… you know," I started, not sure of what to say. "You don't have to stay here just because you're thankful…"

"Oh, no, that's not it, Ginny," he interrupted me, shaking his head vehemently. "I'm not here with you just because I'm thankful, I'm here because I like being here with you. Really." 

"Thanks, Harry." He was so lovely. "But if you want to go to your friends you can, you know…"

"No," he said, smiling. "Today I decided to give Ron the day off… You know, he and Hermione have a lot of _studying_ to do…" His tone was hilarious. "And the boys are so… How can I explain?" he continued, now thinking of how he could say it. "It's like Seamus once said, until last year, there was no girl at all, and then all of a sudden, they're everywhere. So Seamus and the others are everywhere too, trying to meet the girls and… that's not me."

He seemed so embarrassed I had to joke with him: "Because you don't like girls."

He laughed, forgetting his embarrassment for a while, "No, I like girls. I _do like girls, it's just… I'm not good at this."_

"Maybe you just need practice… like Seamus. He's practising, right?"

Harry laughed even more and finally looked at me and said, "That's why it's so nice being with you, Ginny. We can talk, you know?"

"Yes," I said, my face flushed now, "talking is good."

Oh, _no_. Not again.

"Just like friends," he teased.

I was so embarrassed I rushed through the words, "Yes, and when we're _talking to __friends, it's like…"_

"Very good," he finished my sentence, and we both laughed.

"Do you know I actually have a brain?" I said, praying for the earth to swallow me right there.

"I know," he answered, gazing at the ground as if he was too embarrassed to admit it.

But even still, I couldn't have been happier. The Heaven and Hell feeling was there, but it had much more Heaven than I've ever experienced. 

And it was enough so far. 


	5. Chapter Four Day Five: The Now or Never

A/N: As usual, before the chapter, let me thank you: Embyr Black, Lucia Dreams (hey, she's sounding an adorable silly!); john (hum… let's see now if she does tell him, shall we?), sikokid (dark stuff? What do you mean by dark stuff?), HaileyBlack, Robin (I definitely live for your reviews); fredngeorgegirl, gilly, Leslie, harrylover (thank God I'm an anime fan, so I know what kawai means!). Twilight (here it is, the other chapter… no criticism, then? Great!), Female Fred, greeneys, Nessie, Katani Petitedra, GinnyW and furiya. You were so gentle and so nice in your reviews I can't thank you enough. Now I must confess something that may disappoint some people: in this and in the next chapter Ginny is not going to be so funny or adorable. Actually… well, just read and see, alright? If I say one more thing I'll be giving the story away… And please, keep reviewing! I really want to know what you think! ;-) Chapter Four Day Five – the now or never 

To tell you the truth, the previous day had been so perfect I was seriously considering the never. 

I had a lot to lose if I told him. He trusted me now. He was _talking to me. We had actually spent an entire afternoon talking – and although I had blabbered sometimes, he didn't seem to mind._

But, of course, you can count on Ron to destroy the great moments. 

Almost as if I had made an agreement with him – 'you tell if I give up' - he told Harry in exactly the same moment I decided to give up.

I was walking down the stairs when I heard Ron's voice in the empty common room, "Do you think it's wise to spend so much time with Ginny?"

"What do you mean?" Harry's voice seemed truly puzzled.

"Harry, isn't it obvious? My sister has had a crush on you since she laid her eyes on you for the first time," Ron continued and I felt like murdering him. "If you go on like this, she'll probably get hopes and… You don't _like her, do you?"_

Why did Ron's voice have to sound so disgusted in that last sentence? I watched in panic all those minutes that Harry stayed silent, and I couldn't see his face for his back was to me, but I could see Ron's face and he was holding his breath just like I was, waiting for the answer.

"Not like _that_, no." Harry finally answered, shattering my heart into pieces I thought I would never be able to mend again. 

The tears came to my eyes before I could pray for them not to come, and I didn't even know what else was said, until I felt their eyes on me.

I looked at them reluctantly, shaking my head in a casual 'no,' as if to say it didn't matter, but my face was wet with tears that wouldn't stop coming, so they knew it did matter; it mattered more than they thought it did.

So I slowly turned my back at them, ignoring the faint "Ginny, I'm sorry" from Ron, and climbed back up the stairs, to the one place I'd feel safe in at that moment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I stayed there the entire morning, but by lunchtime I heard the door open slowly and didn't even bother to look.

It seemed the perfect arrangement until I felt someone sitting on my bed and I heard Hermione's voice: "Ron told me what happened."

The tears all came back again and I couldn't bring myself to look at her.

"He shouldn't have done that, and he is terribly sorry now."

"It doesn't matter," I said, trying to dry my face with my hands, determined not to let Hermione explain anything. "I had established a deadline. Today was the fifth day." It seemed important for me to let her know. "I should have been ready."

"No one's ever ready for this," Hermione said, and could she please sound a little less wise right now? 

I didn't know if I wanted to be understood. She would pity me if she understood.

And I had enough pity for myself right now.

"He was just the first boy you had a crush on," she continued, as if to comfort me. "Others will come."

"Don't say that." I shook my head, for I didn't want to listen anymore.

"But it's true," she said, brushing away my tears with gentle hands.

"It's not, not right now," I said, feeling every piece of my heart skipping a beat just as much as it hurt. "I feel like I could never…"

"It's normal." 

I looked her in the eye, tired of her trying to comfort me that way. "What would you feel if Ron had turned you down? Would you smile and think, 'Alright, it didn't work, so let's move on'?" I saw in her face she was thinking about it. "Would you?"

She looked at my hands, for I was squeezing hers gently but repeatedly.

"He was _everything_ for so long, Hermione, I just… Don't tell me it was a crush," I sighed, "because in the past days, he became even more. He was… He was all I wanted. And now it's gone." Then the realization struck me. "I have nothing to lose now."

By having nothing to lose, I had everything to gain.

I looked at Hermione, who seemed to understand perfectly what I meant.

"He's in his room right now." She sighed. "Just give me five minutes to take Ron out of there."


	6. Chapter Five No Point in Counting Anymo...

A/N: Thank you so much, everyone who reviewed!! So, thanks: Pseudonym Sylphmuse (funny, though, I don't really like the idea of Ginny resembling Harry's mother… I don't think history should repeat itself, it should be improved); GiRliEgIrL; HaileyBlack (here's the fluff); fredngeorgegirl (thank you for your trusting!); Nessie; john (please, don't be angry… but Harry won't be saying _that_, no.); Ian; Female Fred; kas; MysticWood (you're so clever, I consider Harry being 22 as well, so he would be a perfect boyfriend…*_sigh_*); Katani Petitedra; Potter Person (I'm glad you stopped to read my little romance fic…); silver10fire; Hettie Hoffleboffer (here's the ending, and thank you so much for the compliments… you made my day); evilsocksmonster and anglbaby (please, babble as much as you want! ;-)

Really, I was feeling very depressed nowadays (don't ask me why, I never know the reason), but your reviews made me a happy girl with a happy-ending story!

Here it is, the final chapter! A little bit more of angst and then… pure fluff. Hope you like it! 

Chapter Five 

No point in counting anymore 

I entered his room quietly and found him laying on his bed, his arm covering his eyes and I thought he was sleeping until he said: 

"Please, Ron, just leave me alone."

"Sorry, not Ron," I whispered, but somehow he heard me, for he jumped and looked at me.

He kept staring at me, surprised, his face redder than my hair, and I said softly:

"Girls are just everywhere now, aren't we?" 

A long time passed in silence, until he said, "I'm sorry I gave you the wrong impression."

"You didn't," I promptly denied. "I was the one who didn't… I refused to see it. You never gave me the wrong impression, Harry."

"So… we're still friends, right?" 

His voice seemed so faint, so unsure. But I knew what I had to do.

"No, we're not." I sat beside him while taking a deep breath to continue. "We were never friends, and we can't be, not now."

"You see," I continued, "I would love to say this didn't matter, but I couldn't, because it hurts too much for me to pretend it doesn't. And I would never be able to be your friend, even to talk to you, without it hurting."

His eyes were so confused I pitied him even more than I pitied myself.

"I like you, Harry." I shivered before admitting it, but I had to tell the entire truth. "I think I actually love you, and until this morning, I wanted to be a part of your life. It didn't matter if I was just your friend, because at least I would be there. But now it has changed, and I realized being your friend is not what I want."

I looked down at his bed. "It will never be enough and right now, I'm losing what I want most."

Harry gasped, but I interrupted him, "And now I have nothing to lose. Therefore, I'm allowing myself to be very selfish and to think only of me while I'm here. Because someday you'll get a girlfriend, and she will be in your room because you invited her, and it will still hurt." I was crying again. "Something inside me is telling me it will hurt for a long time yet." 

So that was it. He was too shocked to speak and I was losing my nerve, so I did what I had gone there to do; I quickly covered his mouth with mine, feeling his lips on mine and his breath on my cheek. 

His body was rigid. He opened his mouth, maybe to protest, but I didn't allow him to; I softly let my tongue enter his mouth and touch his tongue, pausing to keep the feeling in my memory.

And then I slowly retreated, brushing his lips with mine one last time before finally moving away from him, and said before going away from his bed and his room:

"I just wanted my first kiss to be with you."

With that, I turned my back and left as quickly as I could. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had tried not to, but I couldn't help to watching him the next few days.

He had seemed so mind-absented, going through the days without even noticing them. I couldn't blame him, for I was feeling the exactly same way, watching the days fall through me without caring about it.

Ron had already apologized so many times I wasn't even angry with him anymore. Well, he had tried to play the big brother and I couldn't blame him for that – actually, I could, but I was feeling so bad that it didn't seem to mind anymore.

The kiss had been the worst thing I could have done, because now I wanted more. His lips were so soft, and his mouth was so delicious I couldn't help but dream about it over and over again. 

And I kept imagining how it would have been if he had kissed me back.

But this was not getting me anywhere. 

And I was right: the pain was still there, all the time. Sometimes when he would smile at Hermione, or when he laughed about something that the twins had said, I could feel the pieces of my heart clearly shattered in my chest, and they were all screaming his name.

Stupid heart and stupid me. He was going on with his life, and all I could do was keep dreaming.

The pain seemed even more unbearable when he was talking to Cho. He would actually stop to chat with her every time they met in the corridors, and their smiling at each other made me so sick I felt like throwing up.

One day, Hermione sat beside me while Ron was talking to Harry during dinner and said, "He doesn't like Cho."

I just smiled, wondering what her point was, but I didn't even bother to ask. Anyway, she said, "Trust me, he doesn't."

Couldn't she see that it didn't matter anymore? So he didn't like Cho; he didn't like me either. 

And now there I was, sitting by the fireplace in the common room, oblivious to anything around me, thinking about Harry and his kiss. Well, _my kiss. He just entered with the unwilling mouth._

I heard the portrait open, and then heard footsteps, and it was now that I realized everyone was already sleeping in their dorms. _It must be really late, I thought, and moved slowly, wondering if it was worth going to bed not to sleep right now._

But then I heard the footsteps hesitate and finally turn back and come closer. I looked up to see Harry coming in my direction without even looking at me, but apparently he knew I was there, for he seemed to be avoiding looking at me.

He sat in the seat in front of me and placed his broom beside him, sighing heavily.

I saw he was in his Quidditch robes, which made me remember all the fantasies I had with him in those robes. He always looked so good in the red uniform I couldn't help but think naughty things. 

Well, let's face it, if my mother knew half of the things I dreamed of with Harry, she would never call me her little girl again. 

I was wondering where the rest of the team was when he seemed to read my mind.

"My mind was not on the practice… the team asked _kindly for me to call it a night." _

I smiled hesitantly, wondering what he wanted with me, but then he spoke, "My life is a mess."

I just stared at him, not understanding where he was going with this.

"I mean, I don't even _have_ a life outside of Hogwarts, and when I'm here things are so confusing." He sighed heavily again. "I'm famous and just now I'm beginning to understand how, but I still don't understand why, you know? I can't see the reason for my life to be what it is now."

I realized he didn't know what to say. He was improvising, trying to put into words his confused thoughts.

"It really is a mess. And I kept thinking, why would anyone want to be a part of this mess? Look at Ron, or Hermione, all they had to go through just because they're my friends, and that's all that comes to my mind, why would anyone want to… and Ron told me you would, that you wouldn't mind the mess, and you would…" His eyes showed confusion and hope all at the same time when he finally looked in my eyes and asked, "Would you?" 

My heart jumped with joy and hope, and I prayed, _'Please, please, let it be what I'm thinking it is, please…' _

"After the answer I gave Ron I kept thinking about what I had done; was it right? And then you said all those things, and you…" He hesitated. "You kissed me. Then I realized I was wrong."

He shook his head as if to shake off his confusion. "Would you? Because it turns out I do like you like _that_."

My heart went back to being whole in my chest, and it seemed to be almost exploding there, beating so fast, screaming his name, as was my entire body. 

I softly whispered, "There's nothing I would like more than to be a part of your mess."

He sighed in relief and quickly left his seat to kneel down before me and kiss me. 

The kiss was everything I've ever dreamed, if not better. His mouth was fully covering mine, his lips touching mine so strongly and yet, so gently. I felt his tongue caressing my lips before entering my mouth and we stayed there a long time, circling each other's mouths, holding each other so closely as if frightened one would move away.

We only parted when we had to gasp for air, both of us smiling wildly, looking at each other's eyes, and I knew he was as crazy to kiss me again as I was to kiss him.

Then I heard a croak from above, and with a quick look I saw Neville's toad, Trevor, staring curiously at us, watching the whole scene from above the fireplace. But I didn't care he was there, as my attention went back to Harry and just Harry.

After all, toads are the most romantic creatures in the world. 


End file.
